A few answers regarding Broadband Stimulus Funding

You may have heard about Eagle Communications CEO Gary Shorman’s recent testimony in front of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology regarding federal funding for broadband services expansion.

Mr. Shorman was invited by the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee to explain Eagle’s situation with members of Congress because Congress is taking a closer look at how broadband money was distributed under the economic stimulus plan.

Eagle’s situation isn’t the only one in the United States. During the subcommittee hearing, Congressman John Shimkus of Illinois mentioned similar issues in his district where broadband service providers similar to Eagle  that were fighting the same battle of competing with a company who had received taxpayer funding.

Here are some answers to questions we’ve received:

Q: Why is Eagle raising the issue now?

A:     Eagle does not have a beef with NexTech or Government Recovery Act funds. The objective of Recovery Act funding was to provide more broadband in rural communities. We know there are places in Kansas with inadequate broadband Internet service, but Hays, Kansas is not one of those places. According to the Kansas Corporation Commission, 99.99% of homes in Ellis County, Kansas (where Hays is located) have access to high speed Internet (3 to 6 Mbps downloads).

Q: Doesn’t Eagle just have “sour grapes” that they didn’t get any funding?

A: No. Eagle did apply for a grant.  However, Eagle’s applications focused on serving areas where there were truly un-served customers. One example would be our application for a grant in Cheyenne County that would have provided wireless services to rural customers near St. Francis, Kansas (where only 56% of households have access to high speed Internet). This is significantly different than NexTech’s application that included overbuilding Hays. Eagle DID NOT apply for a loan or grant in Ellis County or Hays as this area is already well served.

We know that in this information age, you deserve to have information straight from the horse’s mouth. In the upcoming days, weeks and months, we plan to use this space to keep you informed regarding the status of Eagle’s and other broadband providers’ fight against wasteful spending of everyone’s tax dollars.